Tag: vegetarian lunch ideas

Try This— The Easiest Homemade Vegetarian Ramen Recipe

I pretty much lived on ramen when I was in college. Back then my four basic food groups were salt, junk, cheap, and easy. Such is the gut fortitude of a nineteen year old. Times have certainly changed, and though my taste and my junk food cravings haven’t, at least now I’m old enough to try and make healthier choices. I want to keep my ramen classy, y’all. No more undergrad ramen for me! I mix up my own seasoning and keep it on the shelf, ready for those nights when I’m feeling just as sleepy as I did when I was in college. You can’t get much easier than a basic ramen bowl, and with some simple add-ins, you’ll be well on your way to total ramen sophistication. You must try this!!!

Homemade Ramen Seasoning

ingredients

  • 2 tbsp poultry seasoning
  • 2 tbsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp onion powder
  • 2 vegetable bullion cubes
  • 1 tbsp black pepper

directions

  • crush bullion cubes into a powder
  • mix all ingredients, including bullion, together
  • store in an airtight container

Basic Ramen bowl

Ingredients

  • 2 oz vermicelli rice noodles (If you use this kind that’s about one quarter of the box)
  • 1 c of boiling water
  • 1 tbsp homemade ramen seasoning (you might want to start with less and add more to taste)

Directions

  • place rice noodles in a small bowl
  • sprinkle with homemade ramen seasoning
  • add boiling water and allow the rice noodles to sit for 3-5 minutes stirring occasionally to separate the noodles
  • Enjoy!

optional add-ins

  • chili oil or (homemade) sriracha, to taste
  • a splash of lemon or lime juice
  • a boiled egg or two
  • lightly fried tofu
  • kimchi
  • quick cooking vegetables: spinach, thinly slice cabbage, romaine lettuce, mushrooms, bean sprouts, or green onions are all good choices
  • frozen vegetables: corn and peas are my favorite! Just be sure to thaw them a bit in warm water before adding them to your ramen bowl

This recipe makes the perfect mason jar lunch. just like these healthy mason jar snack ideas, mason jar ramen is ready in minutes. The dry ingredients have a long shelf life, so you can assemble a few dry noodles/seasoning mason jars well ahead of time. When you’re ready to eat them, just lift one from the pantry and add boiling water. Lunch in 3-5 minutes with no effort! Think of it as a savory alternative to your favorite mason jar oatmeal recipe.

Recipe adapted from: Connoisseurusveg and Minimalist Baker

Try This— Vegetarian ‘Chicken’ Shawarma

I’m not really in the business of trying to fool any meat eaters with my vegetarian recipes. I stay away from mock meat for the most part and I just bask in the glory that is a well prepared plant based meal. But this Beyond Meat stuff is really testing my resolve as a dyed in the wool vegetarian, and it’s also making it possible for me to slip more plant based meals under the radar to my unassuming, carnivorous family members. Case in point: this vegetarian chicken shawarma I just made over the weekend. There are no words, let’s just say these are amazing. You can’t get a meatier meal than shawarma, and up until now there was absolutely no viable vegetarian substitute. This recipe from Gimme Delicious has the slow roasted taste of your classic shawarma with none of the meat.  You must try this!!!

Vegetarian ‘Chicken’ Shawarma

Ingredients

  • 1 pack Beyond Meat© Chicken strips
  • ½ cup sliced onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, diced
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil ( 2 for the pan and 2 in the paste)
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • ½ teaspoon all spice
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 4 pitas
  • optional toppings sliced onion, tomatoes, lettuce
  • Creamy Yogurt White Sauce

Directions

  • Combine the spices, garlic, and 2 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. The mixture will form a thick paste. Next, add the chicken strips and onions. Combine the chicken with the paste.
  • Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large heavy-duty pan or skillet. After the pan is very hot toss in the chicken and onion mixture. Sautee for 2-3 minutes or until he chicken is lightly charred and the onions are soft.
  • to make a shawarma sandwich, lay a pita flat on a plate with a sheet of foil under it. Top with chicken, veggies and sauce.

***If you’re vegan, leave out the sauce!

Try This— Crispy Cauliflower Burger With Spicy Hummus Mayo

I want to make this clear: I am not one of those militant vegetarians. You know the ones I’m talking about. Your one vegetarian friend that winces every time you order a steak. The one that begins every sentence with some kind of snide comment about what you’re having for lunch. That one friend that sucks the enjoyment smooth out of any meal, because, you know, they’re so enlightened. I repeat: I am not one of those vegetarians. I share vegetarian recipes, but I completely understand that a lot of people eat meat, and I’m totally fine with that. I also know that some people really need meat… the iron, the protein, whatever. I’m totally cool with that too. This Crispy Cauliflower Burger recipe that I’m about to share with you, though labeled vegetarian, is completely Earth shattering-ly amazing whatever your dietary preference. So you have to feel me when I say this. Do whatever you have to do to make this here burger. Add bacon. Drink a pint of bone broth. Whatever. No excuses. You must try this!

Crispy Cauliflower Burger

Ingredients

  • 1 head cauliflower, cut as above
  • 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
  • Salt
  • Black pepper
  • ½ cup flour
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • Vegetable oil, for frying
  • 2 slices provolone cheese
  • 2 potato-bread buns, toasted
  • Spicy Hummus-Mayo (recipe below)
  • Leaf lettuce
  • Sliced roasted red peppers (from jar)

Directions

***How to cut cauliflower steaks

  1. choose the largest cauliflower you can find; they’re much easier to cut into steaks.
  2. Remove the outer leaves and trim the stem end.
  3. Hold cauliflower with its base on a cutting board.
  4. With a sharp knife, make one cut through the center of the cauliflower to divide it in half.
  5. Now cut each half into two 3/4-inch thick slices. Save the ends to eat as a snack or serve with salad

  • Blanch the cauliflower steaks by gently placing them into simmering water for about 2-3 minutes, just until crisp-tender; remove and shock in ice-water to cool; drain and pat the “steaks” dry with paper towel, carefully.
  • Combine the panko breadcrumbs with the grated parmesan cheese in a large bowl, along with a pinch of salt and some black pepper, and set aside for a moment.
  • Bread the cauliflower “steaks” by dipping them in the flour, then into the beaten eggs, then into the panko/parmesan mixture; set aside on a plate while you heat your oil for frying.
  • Heat enough oil in a large non-stick pan to shallow fry, about 1-2 inches; once oil is hot, add the breaded cauliflower “steaks” in and fry for roughly 2 minutes per side, or until golden-brown; place the “steaks” on paper towels to drain.
  • Top each “steak” with a slice of provolone cheese, and place it under the broiler (or small toaster oven) just to melt the cheese.
  • To assemble the burgers, spread some of the Spicy Hummus-Mayo onto both top and bottom toasted buns, then add some leaves of lettuce; place the cheesy cauliflower “steak” over the lettuce, then top it with a few slices of the roasted red peppers, and cover it with the top bun; serve while hot with choice of sides.

Spicy Hummus-Mayo

Ingredients

• ½ cup garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons mayo
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• Pinch or two red pepper flakes (more or less depending on your preference)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

  • Place all of the ingredients up to and including the red pepper flakes into the bowl of food processor, and blend until smooth
  • with processor running, drizzle in the oil, until well blended; use immediately, or store in fridge until ready to use.

Source: Cozy Apron

Try This—Spanakopita Grilled Cheese

So I broke my Huel diet last night on the most divine sandwich I’ve had in a long time. I didn’t feel much like cooking some elaborate meal so I opted for the tried and true grilled cheese sandwich. I usually put sliced tomato directly on a grilled cheese instead of making a side of tomato soup. Two birds, one stone. But alas, I had no tomato. I had no tomato soup. I didn’t even have any cheddar cheese. So as it goes with most tasty new recipes, last night’s sandwich was born of a combination of desire and improvisation. I bring to you the Spanakopita Grilled Cheese. You must try this!!!

Spanakopita Grilled Cheese

ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon softened butter
  • 4 slices good-quality bread
  • 1 clove garlic, sliced thin
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 shallot, sliced thinly
  • One 10-ounce bag baby spinach, or 2 big handfuls
  • Pinch salt and freshly cracked pepper
  • 1 teaspoon chopped dill
  • 2 ounces feta, crumbled
  • 4 thin slices provolone cheese

Directions

  • Preheat your panini press (you can make this on the stove top, but for next level sandwiches you really should invest in a panini press).
  • Divide butter evenly between the four slices of bread, spread thinly on one side of each slice.
  • In a medium skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, add the garlic and shallot, and cook about 4 minutes, or until the garlic is golden-brown. Add spinach and salt and pepper, and cook for a few more minutes, until the spinach is wilted and most of the moisture is cooked out. Add dill and feta, turn off heat, and mix.
  • Assemble the sandwiches by placing two slices of bread butter side-down on your press or pan, add one slice of provolone to each, then divide the spinach mixture in half and place half on each slice. Top with the remaining 2 slices of cheese and slices of bread, butter side-up.
  • If using a panini press, put the lid down and cook for about 5 minutes, or until golden and bubbly. If using a pan, flip after about 5 minutes, then cook on the other side for 3 minutes. Enjoy!

Source: Alexandra V. Jones

Try This— Reuben Inspired Vegetarian Sauerkraut Sandwich

My health crazes come in waves. I make secret promises to myself every now and again that I’ll juice everyday and incorporate at least one raw ingredient at every meal. Sigh. Then that ‘sort your life out’ urgency surrounding New Years, or most recently back-to-school, wears off and I’m back to quick hunger fixes that are not always the healthiest choices. So here we are. School is in full swing. Days are long and hectic. Weeknights are way too short, and weekends are lightning fast. My menu goals have once again degenerated from lofty meal plans filled with raw foods and special recipes to the quickest grab and go recipe I can make, usually with whatever hodgepodge of ingredients I still have on hand. But sometimes, in the midst of all of the work week chaos and the lazy girl meals I resort to, I find a happy place. A place where my lazy girl, work week meal is actually super healthy. Enter the sauerkraut sandwich.

So putting sauerkraut on a sandwich is as American as, well, it’s as American as a hot Reuben. When I was a kid, my parents used to drive us over the Williamsburg Bridge and head up to Madison Ave. in Midtown. There was this deli there that was famous for their Reuben sandwiches. In fact, I think the place might have been called Reuben’s Delicatessan. Whatever the place was called, they seriously had some bangin’ reubens. Corned Beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, and Russian dressing on rye bread. A beautiful representation of the diversity of America, totally unlike this recent wave of venomous xenophobia we’ve seen infecting the headlines. #NoFascistUSA. Ahem, I digress.

Anyway, Reubens were one of my favorite sandwiches when I was still a meat eater, and as a vegetarian, I’ve often used those favorite, childhood recipes to inspire the recipes I create today. This sauerkraut sandwich recipe is totally inspired by those classic Reubens I loved as a kid.

 

Okay. So I’m gonna tell you what this sandwich is all about, but you gotta promise you’ll at least try it. Pinky swear, because this right here might be a giant leap of faith. On paper these ingredients listed together won’t sound all that tasty, but I just need you to let me guide you through this. The two main ingredients are sauerkraut and almond butter. Seriously, you guys! Keep reading! I promise it works. For those of you that don’t really like sauerkraut, let me try to set your mind at ease just a little bit. I don’t go crazy for sauerkraut either. I mean, it’s okay, but honestly I could do without it. I’m not all that into almond butter either. Again, it’s good, but not to die for. You have to trust me when I say this though… the two combined make for one of the most divine, yet healthy sandwiches you’ll ever have. Leap of faith for sure. You must try this!!!

Reuben Inspired Vegetarian Sauerkraut Sandwich

ingredients

  • 2 slices of bread, toasted
  • sauerkraut, drained
  • 2-3 tbsp almond butter
  • Bragg’s Liquid Amino (we’re talking less than a teaspoon)
  • garlic powder, pinch

Directions

  • drain your sauerkraut by placing it between some paper towels
  • try to get as much of the liquid off as possible
  • on toasted bread, spread an even layer of almond butter on both slices
  • place your drained sauerkraut on top of the almond butter
  • sprinkle the sauerkraut with a pinch of garlic powder, then drizzle a little Bragg’s over top (again, be careful not to soak your sandwich, a very little bit of Bragg’s goes a long way)
  • close your sandwich and dig in!

Optional add-ons which are fun:

Swiss Cheese—if you want it melted, don’t be afraid to pop the whole sandwich in the oven, it won’t hurt it

Alfafa Sprouts— health benefits galore

Roasted Garlic Paste—only if you’re surrounded by people that love you for you no matter how bad your breath smells

Tempeh—mostly for the texture, but remember tempeh has a very nutty flavor. Keep that in mind when you’re spreading your almond butter